On June 12, 2017, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced details of its Global Skills Strategy. First announced in November 2016, the Global Skills Strategy is intended to help promote global investment in Canada and support the Government of Canada’s Innovation and Skills Plan.

As of February 6, 2014, visitors to Canada will automatically be considered for multiple-entry temporary resident visas (“TRVs”). A multiple-entry TRV will allow a visitor to enter Canada on multiple occasions, during the validity period of the visa, without having to reapply each time. Citizenship and Immigration Canada has also increased temporary resident application fees as of February 6, 2014.

The refugee determination process has been a hotly debated topic in Canadian immigration. These changes could affect the Canadian workforce, which has been experiencing a shortage of skilled labour in a number of provinces. It is too early to say whether these change will be a good move or a bad one for Canada, but it is evident that Canada will be accepting more refugees than ever before.

Foreign nationals who hold work permits in Canada sometimes wonder what will happen to their immigration status if they quit their jobs or are terminated by their Canadian employers. Surprisingly, the termination of a foreign national’s employment does not automatically invalidate his or her work permit or underlying temporary resident status. However, foreign nationals who travel abroad after the termination of their employment might not be able to return to Canada even if their work permits technically remain valid.

On November 24, 2010, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (“CIC”) announced that it was implementing a pilot project to grant open work permits to foreign spouses, common law partners, and dependent children of skilled Canadian citizens and Canadian permanent residents who are returning to Ontario for work. However, the pilot project is extremely limited.